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By
Rebecca Silverman [former]
- March 29, 2022
Court
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Daily Stories
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Homicides
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Shooting
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Suspects
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Victims
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A 31-year-old defendant pleaded guilty to fatally shooting a man in a commercial area of the Congress Heights neighborhood.
On Oct. 6, 2018, 26-year-old Marquis Jones was found dead from multiple gunshot wounds on the 2900 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, SE. Tondrick Murphy was indicted on charges of first-degree murder while armed, possessing a firearm during a crime of violence and unlawful possession of a firearm.
During a March 28 hearing, Murphy pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and unlawful possession of a firearm as part of a deal he made with the prosecution.
The defense and prosecution agreed that an appropriate sentence for the manslaughter charge would be seven years in prison, with all but five-and-a-half of those years suspended, followed by three years of supervised probation. For the firearm charge, parties agreed to recommend a 28-month sentence, with all but 20 of those months suspended, followed by three years of supervised probation. The sentences would be recommended to run concurrent.
By entering into this plea agreement, Murphy waived certain rights to have a trial and directly appeal his convictions.
Murphy previously rejected a plea offer for voluntary manslaughter while armed and a trial was scheduled to take place in April. Those dates were canceled in light of the plea.
DC Superior Court Judge Milton Lee scheduled Murphy to be sentenced on June 3.